In episode 7 of Marvel’s What If…?, ‘What If… Thor Were an Only Child?’, we get to find out what would have happened if Odin had decided to return the wee babby Loki to his Frost Giant family instead of keeping him, and Thor had grown up believing he was an only child. I’m phrasing it that way because, y’know, Hela still exists. Lest we forget her majesty. It’s a fun, fluffy episode that ends with a terrific cliffhanger that seems to set up the finale of this consistently entertaining animated series, and gives us plenty to talk about until it arrives....

Ruben Fleischer’s Uncharted, however, is one of the rare video game movies to actually make a successful transition from small screen to big screen. Now available to stream on Netflix, the movie captures the feeling of the games while forging its own path that could potentially lead to a sequel or two. With that in mind, here are a few lessons future video game movies can learn from Uncharted....

So why is someone called “the Dark One” pursuing a small group of friends who look much less imposing than the robed women that appear prominently throughout the trailer? Book readers may recognize young Rand Al’Thor (Josha Stradowski), Mat Cauthon (Barney Harris), and Perrin Aybara (Marcus Rutherford) looking relatively carefree in the clips in which they appear, but there’s little doubt that their simple life is about to be irrevocably disrupted....

For years Power Rangers basically had one continuity. Sure it was a little wonky and things didn’t quite all fit together but all the seasons basically took place in one universe. Then Power Rangers RPM happened. At first it was assumed to be a series set far in the future but was confirmed in its team-up with Power Rangers Samurai that no, RPM’s post apocalyptic world was its own continuity....

Nearly 25 years later, there have been three follow-ups if you count 2019’s failed attempt at a semi-reboot within the Men in Black franchise. There’ve also been action figures, video games, a cartoon series, and a theme park ride at Universal Studios. And yet, to date there has never been a Men in Black adventure to capture the charm and ingenuity of that first movie. Sure, Men in Black II made money, but a quick perusal of its Rotten Tomatoes score—currently at 39 percent while the original sits at 92 percent—tells you how it was received, critically....

Maybe they’re the one you first fell for as a kid, or maybe they’re the newest hire who made everything finally click into place. The point is that they’re yours, an actor in a role that is unchangingly, enduringly right. You know your Bond, you may well know your Doctor and own the accompanying action figure/reproduction Sonic screwdriver. But who’s your on-screen Santa? Our writers share theirs below. Tim Allen in The Santa Clause (1994) Look, I’m not any happier about this than you are....

Diablo Immortal is the latest, controversial entry in the legendary Diablo franchise, one specifically designed to cater to mobile gamers. However, according to a new report, a gigantic chunk of the title’s target audience might never get to play it, spelling doom for the fledgling game. Even though Diablo Immortal launched stateside on June 2, it has yet to release in the Asia-Pacific region. Initially, Blizzard and its overseas co-development partner, Chinese tech company NetEase, planned for a June 23 debut in China, Japan, Korea, and the rest of the region, but then on June 19, Blizzard announced the game would be delayed in order to “optimize” the experience....

The Black Phone is the kind of intimate horror tale that Derrickson has done his best work with in films like Sinister and The Exorcism of Emily Rose, and it’s also got the added pedigree of being based on a short story by celebrated genre author Joe Hill. But there was one problem when the picture started coming together: Hawke didn’t want to do it at first. “I felt really proud of Sinister and wanted to work with [Derrickson] again,” the actor tells us on the phone....

This is Morrowind: a land of prophecies, ancient secrets, and earth-bound gods. Much has changed in the more than twenty years since The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind‘s release, but the world that revolutionary RPG gifted us remains one of the best in all of fantasy gaming. The Perils of the Journey When designing a fantasy game’s world, there are often certain traps of the genre that a creator can fall prey to....

Along the way, various archetypes and motifs reoccur, over and over again, because like poetry it all rhymes, even though that’s not always true of real poetry. And just like not all poems rhyme, not all of this recycling in Star Wars works. But it seems like Lucasfilm has finally found a different approach to recycling the core Star Wars tropes for a new generation: just dump them all into one character, specifically Din Djarin, The Mandalorian himself....

An announcement this past weekend from Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich confirmed the studio’s plans to fast-track production of Wonder Woman 3, which will close out a film trilogy, retaining the primary duo of star Gal Gadot and writer/director Patty Jenkins. Yet, with the announcement having come off the historic holiday weekend streaming premiere of what would have been (if not for the pandemic,) one of the biggest box office hits of the year, it notably clarifies that the developing threequel is aimed exclusively as a theatrical release....

A twisty mystery spread across dual timelines, Yellowjackets explores both lengths the girls are driven to in order to survive following the crash and how far the survivors are willing to go to cover up the truth 25 years later. As we look toward season 2, there are still plenty of questions that need answering—from the ultimate fate of many of the original survivors to when, exactly, the group decided that eating their teammates was acceptable in order to live....

Young Justice Season 4 Episode 26 Young Justice: Phantoms closed out its season in strong fashion. “Death and Rebirth” capped a string of excellent episodes with some of the best action this show has ever seen, and the back half of the season very nearly made up for how shaky the first half was. As with all superhero media, though, the end of one story opened up multiple possibilities for the future....

Young Justice: Outsiders Episode 4 The first episode of the second batch of Young Justice‘s return is mostly transitional, and while it’s got a lot to like, there are a couple of issues that I’m worried point to a bigger, structural problem that may develop with the show. When we left our team (not to be confused with The Team), they were kicking ass in Markovia to rescue a bunch of kidnapped kids and the newly powered crown prince....

Whether or not you agree with the way Syfy released 12 Monkeys season 3 as a binge-a-thon this weekend, there’s no denying this series keeps getting better and better, and in some ways, not having to wait between episodes was a good thing. As the long held secret of the identity, purpose, and mythology behind the Witness unfolded, the show didn’t rely on established concepts to tell its story. Rather, it branched out into new territories, farther and farther abreast from the post-plague future and our present while still adding layers to the story we’re familiar with....

So who are the most powerful characters in Street Fighter lore? I’ve put together a list of the top 15. Funny enough, Guile and Chun-Li – the heroes from the two live-action movies – are nowhere to be found. Go figure. 15. Seth Seth has the honor of being the final boss of the Street Fighter IV games. Not only does Seth have Taskmaster powers that allow them to understand basically every fighting move they see but they have a rubbery android body that allows them to upgrade said moves in badass ways....

As it becomes increasingly obvious that nostalgia is driving up prices in the suddenly lucrative collectible video games market, it’s also not a surprise that NES games tend to be among the most desirable collectibles in that world. Not only did the NES ignite a generation’s love of gaming, but the unique state of the industry at the time meant that a lot of games (even good ones) were shipped in small quantities, shipped too late, or otherwise faded into obscurity only to be properly recognized years later....

Well, the all-virtual E3 2021 made a strong argument that the expo is still the biggest event of the year for the games industry, bringing plenty of big announcements from some of the most important companies in the business, including Xbox, Bethesda, Nintendo, Capcom, Bandai Namco, Square Enix, and Ubisoft. Together, these publishers mapped out the future of the Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC gaming. Here are the very BEST games and announcements showcased at E3 2021:...

Man, Marvel’s What If…? series really does draw you in with a false sense of security, doesn’t it? The first episode is an adorable romance story laced with punching Nazis. The second is a tribute to a late actor in the form of galactic utopia. Then we get the Avengers being murdered, the universe being melted, and now Captain America eating human flesh. Enjoy your nightmares, kids! The fifth episode of What If…?...

The story was written by Dickens in order to tackle the relatively new issue of urban poverty, and in particular the growing underclass of impoverished townsfolk produced by the Industrial Revolution. With the rapid shift away from conventional farming and trade practices, and with the rise in new technological advancements, many people were suddenly without work and without the necessary skills to find a job. The British government’s answer to this escalating crisis was the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834....